* Jerry Rosenthal, Louisa County resident and part of Concerned Citizens of Louisa County.

This event is free and open to the public.

The Public Square will be moderated by Thomas A. Silvestri, head of the Richmond Media Group, which includes the Richmond Times-Dispatch, TimesDispatch.com, Richmond.com and Richmond Suburban Newspapers.

When: today, 7-8:30 p.m.

Where: The Times-Dispatch’s downtown offices, 300 E. Franklin St.

Parking: Parking will be available in The Times-Dispatch’s parking deck.

It all comes down to this. For months, Global Zero has campaigned to cut the $1 trillion that world leaders plan to spend on nuclear weapons over the next decade – including $600 billion in the US alone. Now, with just days until the Congressional Super Committee reaches its Nov. 23rd deadline to reduce our federal deficit by $1.2 trillion, we have a real opportunity to cut spending on nukes – and your support has helped us get this far.

The Super Committee is wrestling with grim choices, like cuts to education, health care and other essential services, but one cut is a no-brainer – the nuclear weapons budget. Consensus is growing among budget and security experts: nukes cost billions and do not protect our national security. Cutting our bloated nuclear weapons budget would save hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars and help keep the things we value off the chopping block. Global Zero student activists will deliver our signatures, including yours, to Super Committee members before the deadline – will you ask 10 friends to add their names as well?

Momentum for our movement is building. 65 members of Congress have publicly asked the Super Committee to cut spending on nukes.1 Actress Naomi Watts and former CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson released a video calling on the government to cut nukes.2 Dozens of groups concerned about cuts to everything from education to social security have joined Global Zero’s cut nukes campaign. And The New York Times published an editorial labeling the nuclear weapons budget ”bloated” and calling for a reduction of spending, specifically citing Global Zero’s plan.3 Even the Pentagon is looking to cuts in the nuclear arsenal.4
…

This is the moment we have been waiting for. It is during difficult times that history is written. This is about more than just nukes, it’s about thinking creatively and courageously in the face of adversity. Starting to seriously cut nuclear weapons would be a bold move on the part of our government. It would show that America is looking forward, not backward – that we want to invest in our children’s future, not waste precious resources on dangerous relics of the past.

We need your help to get the message to Congress. Global Zero will deliver the petition to Congressional leaders before the Super Committee decides what to cut. Will you take one minute to ask your friends to demand that we cut nukes first, not the things that matter most? Voices within Congress, the Pentagon and the administration are floating the idea of cutting nukes – and a public outcry could tip the balance. Help us make it happen!

“If you’re going to be in CA, there’s going to be a one-day free seminar on Nuclear Power and the Media at SF State University on Saturday, Dec. 3 at Burk Hall. Lots of speakers and networking. Don’t know if it’s going to be recorded, but I’ll be interviewing the organizer, Steve Zeltzer, on next Tuesday’s Nuclear Hotseat. 4 pm Pacific time, phone: 712-432-1100; PIN (access code): 324564#. Live Q&A. Join us!”

+1
Speech by Ms. Ruiko Muto at the No-Nuke Rally in Tokyo
September 19, 2011

Here’s a bit of what she said:

“And now here we are…
During the past half year, the following things have become clear:
1. The truth of the situation is being hidden…
2. The country is NOT protecting it’s citizens…
3. The accident is still not over…
4. The inhabitants of Fukshima prefecture are being made the subjects of a nuclear experiment…
5. A huge volume of radioactive waste remains…
6. Despite the enormous price that we have paid, there are powers that are intent on driving nuclear power production forward…
7. We have been discarded…
8. We are learning about… …recovering our health, decontamination, measurement of radiation levels, nuclear reactors and radioactivity…
9. The human race is no more than one species among the living creatures of this earth. Is there any other species that usurps it’s own future?”

“The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has scheduled a meeting with officials of Shaw Areva MOX Services at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 15 in Aiken, S.C., to discuss the results of the Applicant Performance Review for the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility currently under construction at the Savannah River site.

The meeting, which is open to the public, will be held at Newberry Hall, 117 Newberry St., SW, in Aiken. NRC officials will be available to answer questions from the public after the business portion of the meeting.”

The petition for the ballot initiative to close California’s nuclear power plants is now available!

*****************************************************************
FROM THE WEBSITE:

[quote] “You can make a difference.

■Click here to download the Initiative Petition Form and Instructions. Do this today. Time is of the essence.

■We need volunteers who are eligible to vote in California to help collect 504,760 voter signatures by April 1, 2012. Or you can sign a petition for just yourself, or friends and family.

■If you just get seven valid signatures and ask those seven people to get seven, and so forth, we will have all the required signatures within a few weeks! If you would like to complete more petitions, that would be of incredible help, too.

■Educate yourself and others on the reasons to support the California Nuclear Initiative.

Register to vote.

■You cannot sign a petition unless you are registered to vote in California.

■Encourage your California friends to register to vote.

Other things you can do.

■Share this site with your friends and family in California and ask them to help.

■Complete the Contact Form and we’ll keep you informed of upcoming events and other information. We will not share your information with other organizations.

Take back the power.

■California citizens have a rare opportunity to decide their own fate.

■This is a grass roots all volunteer campaign.

■Let’s show the country that the 99% in California can take back the power. Be part of the solution.” [end quote]

Nuclear Information and Resource Service
HELP STOP NEW REACTORS AND RATE INCREASES IN FLORIDA
A SERIES OF JANUARY EVENTS
6930 Carroll Avenue, #340, Takoma Park, MD 20912; 301-270-6477; nirsnet@nirs.org; http://www.nirs.org
January 4, 2012

Dear Floridians,

Nuclear Information and Resource Service is pleased that the legal action we started in 2009 with The Ecology Party of Florida and the Green Party of Florida is continuing to slow the development of two new nuclear reactors in Levy County FL (less than 2 hours from Tampa and an hour from Gainesville).

But it is clear that the best way to stop a new nuke is to cut its funding. So we are especially excited to team up with Southern Alliance for Clean Energy this month with a number of public events addressing both the problems with the Levy County new reactors proposal and the problems with charging folks on their power bill now to pay for new nukes later!

No New Nukes — January 2012 events in Central Florida

Start the year with a full-court press to stop the expansion of nuclear energy in Florida and put a spotlight on this 20th Century technology that the 21st Century is showing, once again, to have already failed: nuclear energy is not safe, not clean, not cheap!

Below are events that are currently scheduled. If you live nearby and would like to invite Mary Olson for an informal roundtable or other event, please contact her directly (828-242-5621)

Use my handout, or create your own. I known their are thousands of enenews users.

Reading the posts here as things get worse will not change anything. We need to act as a collective to create a mass awareness change in the world wide community on the dangers of nuclear, plus seriousness of the Fukushima disaster before anything will change.

I know a lot of you have been frustrated trying to convey this message. This method will allow you to communicate the message easily.

The only thing I’d change (or add) is I’d add a footnote for each statement. Then I’d cite the footnoted source of the information. That’s an effective way to add “credibility” for the people who won’t accept statements made on a flyer as fact — unless provided with evidence. I’m in agreement with everything you have said. Just know from personal experience with trying to get signatures on petitions in person & things like that, there are some people who want “proof” or some kind of evidence.

Maybe you could have two different versions. My guess is only 10% or so would want the one with “evidence.”

Maybe that one could have a title that says something like, “Facts About Radiation and Contamination from the Fukushima Nuclear Accident.”

Just my two cent’s worth! Thanks for making the .pdf available. I agree, it’s important to spread the word at the grassroots level.

The Radiation Map Analysis (Europe/Australasia) maps are linked to on the first summary site I refer to in the flyer. The map I used was the easiest to print in black and white that dramatically shows the radiation is outside of Japan.

Thank you for taking the time to provide me with feedback. I think the flyer is being very successful in getting the message quickly to a lot of people. There is always room for improvement.

“The only thing I’d change (or add) is I’d add a footnote for each statement. Then I’d cite the footnoted source of the information. That’s an effective way to add “credibility” for the people who won’t accept statements made on a flyer as fact — unless provided with evidence. I’m in agreement with everything you have said. Just know from personal experience with trying to get signatures on petitions in person & things like that, there are some people who want “proof” or some kind of evidence.”

That is a good point. I have tried to keep it to one A4 page in size.
I will look into adding references next to each statement. The map itself makes a clear statement also.

A busload of Atlanta anti-nuclear activists will hold a community meeting Saturday with residents of the Shell Bluff community near Plant Vogtle to discuss the impacts of the nuclear industry.

The Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Lowery will preside over the event, which will begin with a community luncheon at noon, followed by a 3:30 p.m. news conference, both held at Fairfield Missionary Baptist Church, 1582 Ben Hatcher Road.

The meeting was organized by Georgia’s statewide Coalition for the People’s Agenda and Georgia Women’s Action for New Directions.

“…Interested members of the public can participate in the webinar by registering at https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/844201962. The public is encouraged to register by Jan. 25. Once registered, instructions for joining the webinar, including a teleconference number and a pass code, will be provided.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a daylong public meeting Wednesday in San Luis Obispo to discuss planned updates to Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant’s reactor safety systems.

Plant owner PG&E has requested an amendment to its operating licenses to upgrade several outdated reactor safety components.
The meeting will last from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 333 Madonna Road, San Luis Obispo. It will be a technical discussion among about a dozen plant managers and three representatives of the NRC’s reactor regulation office.

The public is welcome to observe the meeting. However, a portion dealing with security matters will be closed to the public.

About 3 p.m., the public will have an opportunity to ask questions of and make comments to the NRC officials.

Those unable to attend the meeting may listen in via telephone by dialing 888-324-9615 and using the pass code 25740.

Not much response on the dairy/milk front, although a small dairy farmer saw a post at a Weston Price Foundation user group at Yahoo Groups. she is interested in possibly feeding sodium borate and/or zeolite.

Had contacted three organic/raw milk producers. No response, or they take the posture additives will cause them to lose organic certification. As you may be aware, the fed. govt. in the U.S. has made obtaining organic certification extremely difficult. Now farmers are being forced to choose between organic vs. nuclear contamination. Some choice.

Thanks to Admin. and efforts of everyone here, I was able to send the small dairy farmer information on a diary in Hawaii feeding sodium borate, and personal radiation remediation info. Was able to give her contact information for the dairy in HI thanks to ENENEWS having posted an article on using sodium borate to combat rad contamination in milk.

Also was able to send that info. to the Weston Price group. Many people in SF Bay Area will benefit. Many of you posted info. on food/water/milk safety, and made suggestions for taking action. Thank you.

What you are doing will make a huge impact, over time. Just having the info. and links to info. posted here, access to studies has enabled me to share this with others. It is enabling people at the grassroots level to make sound decisions regarding their personal health. It is even beginning to influence some farmers to take measures to ensure a safe supply of food, water, and milk. We may not see the results of local efforts for some time, but change is happening.

I’m excited and encouraged. It will be SO INTERESTING to see what we can collectively accomplish, if we just keep chugging away.

Is it time to send another postcard to that remotely located anti-nuke family in Japan that is being bullied by their government?
If they get consistent road traffic, which we can make happen with the postmans help, they wont close the road.

Does someone remember that article……………..?

I can’t remember the whole story, but I wrote down the address at the time and it costs less than one dollar to help……….

City Hall Park, Burlington
The speak out will be followed by a march up Church Street to the Federal Courthouse, ending in front of the Unitarian Church. The weekly Occupy Burlington General Assembly will then follow in the Church basement at 2pm.

Statement from the Occupy Burlington General Assembly
January 22nd, 2012
We condemn Judge Murtha’s decision in favor of Entergy against the democratic decision of the people and state of Vermont to shut down Vermont Yankee–a dangerous, polluting nuclear plant that has been plagued with accidents, leaks, poor maintenance, and run by a dishonest company. We stand in solidarity with the Vermont Yankee workers and support a just transition where they receive economic support and retraining.
– Occupy Burlington

The Occupy Burlington Environmental Working Group, along with many other anti-nuclear voices, also strongly condemn Judge J. Garvan Murtha’s decision. Murtha’s injunction will not only allow Entergy to continue operating the decrepit, 39-year-old nuclear reactor, it also forbids VT from forcing Entergy to obtain permission to store high-level nuclear waste at the facility.

—
Thanks again for getting in touch about Fukushima. I have been organizing a conference at Willamette University to raise awareness about this tragedy and bring together different perspectives about this event from victims, scholars, environmentalists, relief workers, and government representatives. The event is scheduled to take place February 24-25. I hope you will join us! Here is a link with more information about the event: http://www.willamette.edu/events/fukushima/.

Please note that we are planning to offer live digital streaming of the event so that individuals can see and hear the discussions and presentations from anywhere in the world. I will be presenting on the violations of children’s rights during one of the Saturday panels.

If you would please pass this information along to anyone who might be interested, I would very much appreciate it.

Posted at link discussing “lack of records” kept by Japan govt. agencies. Would appreciate any suggestions you may have regarding the following.

Thank you SO MUCH for your post. Very glad you are with us. Am in beginning stages of putting together a comprehensive package of info. This info. to be presented to local city and county goverments in CA. Subjects: possible contamination of food and water, impact on water quality, food and water safety.

Also want to present on potential impact of incoming tsunami debris working its way southward from BC and WA coastline. This probably as separate presentation.

Am new to doing this (activism) and would appreciate any suggestions. Do you know of anyone I could speak with who might have expertise in presenting to govt. and strategies?

Able to put together a packet, but need help with the organizational aspects. Also need to know how to get data for the scientific part of the presentation from univs. and govt. agencies. Obtainable under FOIA?

Any suggestions welcome. Really looking forward to participating in the conference, either in person or electronically. Very exciting and SO glad to hear people are getting organized. IMHO it will take an international effort to effect change. Since govts. are at present not addressing the issue, academic, scientific, and citizen communities must move forward. Probably be the greatest opportunity for interdisciplinary cooperation, ever.

Governmental data access is under heavy attack right now, at least in some states. These rights need to be secured while we exercise the government data laws, or that info simply won’t be available soon.

I’m not great at media stuff, but I know from the Occupy movement that some activists are using Livestream.com and getting widespread coverage with it. I think it comes with a chat widget, which requires very fast moderating if you want to moderate it.

I would say the Occupiers probably have a lot of expertise on livestreaming.

I can look up what other resources or training I know of, if not today then tomorrow.

My comment about livestreaming was to Dr. Binford, that I thought it was a good thing they were planning on doing.

It’s just streaming the video live, as it happens, online. It’s all the rage on the internet now, not just for activism. Livestream your meeting and you can include so many more people in it.

http://globalrevolution.tv/ – this page has livestreaming too, so they just made their own page in addition to the stream they have up on livestream.com. I don’t know how they did it.

You will probably notice that these kinds of projects leverage more than one kind of technology or platform or social networking media to reach their target audience. The above livestream project also has a corresponding IRC page, Twitter, maybe a Facebook too. Some of these media are subject to practices you may not agree with, like some people think Twitter was doing some censoring.

I’m not sure what the alternatives are to the propietary software/networks. Ideally, some are of the opinion that it should all be open-source software. And it might be nice to have networks that certain authority figures are not likely to have jurisdiction over (as with people’s concerns about Facebook possibly handing over people’s information).

That is getting into privacy issues and such, but for the technology purposes, yes there are ready-to-use tools out there to help you spread your message and media.

If anyone knows of how I might get access to data on spread of radiation globally, possible data on any epidemiological effects, spread of tsunami debris field (data sets, database info.) or studies underway please let me know.

Am planning to attend conference or electronically attend at Willamette Univ. next month.

If you know of anyone in state/fed govt in US who is taking this seriously or at least is open to looking at real data please let me know.

I’d like to do some GIS work mapping all of this.

Would like to report scientific findings to city, county, state govts. & water/air quality agencies. Probably local & county level. Am not sure how to gain access to scientific data, govt. data and doing FOIA.

Want to have some credibility when I report to govt. Also don’t want to “re-invent the wheel” so would like to know who may be working on any of these things.

P.S. The issue of nuclear waste storage was what I’d originally seen as the “hot potato” no one wanted to handle, pre-Fukushima. Now there is vastly more at stake. Hence my online moniker here, “HoTater,” in reference to the nuke tater no one wants to hang onto for long.

In 2006, the Florida Legislature gave Progress Energy and Florida Power & Light what seems to be unlimited access to your wallet to pay in advance for nuclear projects in Florida. Since 2008, the Florida Public Service Commission has approved the utility companies taking over $1 billion dollars in “nuclear cost recovery” out of our pockets!

Progress and FPL haven’t even committed to building the new nuclear reactors yet, and if they don’t build them (and we’re working to stop them!), the utilities will not be issuing any refunds. Nuclear cost recovery is really a tax–and we have no vote!

Fortunately, Representative Michelle Rehwinkel-Vasilinda and Senator Mike Fasano are working hard to advocate for Floridians by introducing bills to repeal the nuclear early cost recovery provision (Statute 366.93).
If passed, House Bill 4031 and Senate Bill 740 could effectively put an end to new nuclear reactor proposals in Florida.

Unfortunately, both bills are currently held up in committee and may not gain traction. That is where YOU come in! Please take a moment to contact Governor Scott, the relevant committee chairmen and your state legislators and demand that these bills be given fair consideration. Your letter will be sent to all of these officials!

After all, it is your money the utilities are using in advance to finance these risky projects. Instead, Florida needs investments in more affordable and less risky energy efficiency and renewable energy choices.

and just $5, $10 or $20/month from many people really adds up for NIRS and helps smooth our cashflow all year round. And don’t worry, you can stop it or adjust the amount any time you wish. Thank you so much! You can donate here.

SPRING ANTI-NUCLEAR ACTIONS 2012
WHAT IS YOUR GROUP PLANNING?
HELP US HELP YOU ORGANIZE AND MOBILIZE!

February 7, 2012

Dear Friends,

The first anniversary of Fukushima is rapidly approaching and groups around the U.S. and across the world are organizing protests and other actions. Not far behind are the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl anniversaries–traditionally times of action. And this year there is a also a call for support actions against Vermont Yankee on March 24, which was scheduled to close on March 21.

We’ve heard about protest rallies and other events in Vermont, Georgia, Maryland, New York and elsewhere; now we want to learn about and help with your plans!

We will be posting all actions we learn of on our website beginning next week, and putting out Alerts and press releases, posting on social networks, etc. to support them and do all we can to help you organize, mobilize and build turnout.

Please fill out a brief questionnaire here and let us know what you’re planning and how NIRS can help.

International actions welcome!

Don’t have an action planned yet? It’s not too late! Gather some friends and plan one now; we’ll help however we can.

A few thoughts:

*As you surely know by now, there are 23 General Electric Mark I Fukushima-clone reactors operating in the U.S. Nothing has been done to upgrade them or close them in the past year. All of them should be closed (along with all of the other “pressure suppression” reactors). None of them should escape being a target of protest and exposure this Spring.

*For that matter, the NRC has not implemented a single one of its Fukushima Task Force recommendations made in response to the accident. This blatant failure needs to be brought squarely into the public arena.

*Current emergency planning requirements in the U.S. (and many other countries) are simply…

are simply inadequate and must be strengthened. NIRS will be launching a major campaign on this February 15; we’ll send you details at that time, but it may help inform some of your actions.

*Vermont groups are asking for actions–especially at Entergy Corporation power plants (of any kind) and offices across the country–on March 24 in support of Vermont Yankee shutdown and against Entergy’s continued legal war against the State of Vermont and its people. We hope your group will consider doing such an action. More information from the SAGE Alliance here.

*Actions at utility offices in cities are generally much more visible than actions at reactor sites in remote locations, especially if you have a small group of people. Even a few people with signs and handouts for passersby bring needed attention to the issue. Occupying utility offices provides even greater visibility (although, of course, the possibility of arrest)!

*Not part of a group or simply can’t get out to an action? During March and April take advantage of the attention nuclear issues will be receiving and help build it: write letters to the editors of your local newspapers, blog postings, posts on social networks, call into talk radio shows, etc. Demand nuclear shutdown. Help let the world know that it’s time to implement a nuclear-free carbon-free energy future!

Please consider making a small monthly donation to NIRS. It’s easy and automatic, and just $5, $10 or $20/month from many people really adds up and helps smooth our cashflow all year round. And don’t worry, you can stop it or adjust the amount any time you wish. Thank you so much! You can donate here.

A one day conference, The Fukushima Nuclear Disaster – One Year Later, will be held at the SFU Harbour Centre campus on March 11th, 2012 from 9a.m.-5p.m. To register, please send an email to fukushimaconference@yahoo.ca or call 604-324-1125. (Registration fee: $10). The conference is sponsored by Physicians for Global Survival (Canada), Washington State Physicians for Social Responsibility, SFU, UBC Dept of Pediatrics – BC Children’s Hospital and NextGenU.
Mar 11th, 2012
9:00a.m. – 5:00p.m.
SFU Harbour Centre Campus (Downtown)

SPRING ANTI-NUCLEAR ACTIONS 2012
WHAT IS YOUR GROUP PLANNING?
HELP US HELP YOU ORGANIZE AND MOBILIZE!

February 7, 2012

Dear Friends,

The first anniversary of Fukushima is rapidly approaching and groups around the U.S. and across the world are organizing protests and other actions. Not far behind are the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl anniversaries–traditionally times of action. And this year there is a also a call for support actions against Vermont Yankee on March 24, which was scheduled to close on March 21.

We’ve heard about protest rallies and other events in Vermont, Georgia, Maryland, New York and elsewhere; now we want to learn about and help with your plans!

We will be posting all actions we learn of on our website beginning next week, and putting out Alerts and press releases, posting on social networks, etc. to support them and do all we can to help you organize, mobilize and build turnout.

Please fill out a brief questionnaire here and let us know what you’re planning and how NIRS can help.

International actions welcome!

Don’t have an action planned yet? It’s not too late! Gather some friends and plan one now; we’ll help however we can.

A few thoughts:

*As you surely know by now, there are 23 General Electric Mark I Fukushima-clone reactors operating in the U.S. Nothing has been done to upgrade them or close them in the past year. All of them should be closed (along with all of the other “pressure suppression” reactors). None of them should escape being a target of protest and exposure this Spring.

*For that matter, the NRC has not implemented a single one of its Fukushima Task Force recommendations made in response to the accident. This blatant failure needs to be brought squarely into the public arena.

*Current emergency planning requirements in the U.S. (and many other countries) are simply…

*Current emergency planning requirements in the U.S. (and many other countries) are simply inadequate and must be strengthened. NIRS will be launching a major campaign on this February 15; we’ll send you details at that time, but it may help inform some of your actions.

*Vermont groups are asking for actions–especially at Entergy Corporation power plants (of any kind) and offices across the country–on March 24 in support of Vermont Yankee shutdown and against Entergy’s continued legal war against the State of Vermont and its people. We hope your group will consider doing such an action. More information from the SAGE Alliance here.

*Actions at utility offices in cities are generally much more visible than actions at reactor sites in remote locations, especially if you have a small group of people. Even a few people with signs and handouts for passersby bring needed attention to the issue. Occupying utility offices provides even greater visibility (although, of course, the possibility of arrest)!

*Not part of a group or simply can’t get out to an action? During March and April take advantage of the attention nuclear issues will be receiving and help build it: write letters to the editors of your local newspapers, blog postings, posts on social networks, call into talk radio shows, etc. Demand nuclear shutdown. Help let the world know that it’s time to implement a nuclear-free carbon-free energy future!

Please consider making a small monthly donation to NIRS. It’s easy and automatic, and just $5, $10 or $20/month from many people really adds up and helps smooth our cashflow all year round. And don’t worry, you can stop it or adjust the amount any time you wish. Thank you so much! You can donate here.

Join LEO on Feb 29th to lobby our state legislators to support a resolution that asks DNR to monitor for all the coal ash toxins around all coal ash ponds and landfills in the state. When toxins are found in groundwater, utilities should be required to clean it up. Again, remind me why we put this stuff near our drinking water? Ameren and other utilities should not be allowed to build expensive landfills in our floodplains and then defer the cost to electric rate payers. It is risky, needless and expensive.

HOW TO GET THERE: join a carpool out of St. Louis or email LEO at prsmail@gmail.com to carpool from Gray Summit/Labadie

WHY: Missourians are gearing up to lobby on coal waste toxin monitoring by DNR around all the sites in MO! N.C. officials found toxins leaching into groundwater around EVERY site in the state. Missourians need to know the risk and identify locations that require clean-up. WE NEED YOU TO HELP US! We have the power to change policy.

The third annual ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit will be held at the Gaylord Convention Center, February 27 – 29, 2012

“The event is designed to bring together key players from across the energy ecosystem – researchers, entrepreneurs, investors, corporate executives, and government officials – to share ideas for developing and deploying the next generation of energy technologies. The Summit’s unique combination of leaders makes it the perfect forum for developing energy solutions that will enable America to out-innovate our global competitors.”

Anti nuclear campaign against Hinkley nuclear site
Anti-nuclear campaigners set up camp at Hinkley C site, BBC News 12 Feb 12, Protesters have set up camp in an abandoned farm on the site of the proposed Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in Somerset.

They are angry West Somerset Council has given EDF Energy the go-ahead for preparatory work before planning permission has been granted…. The South West Against Nuclear protesters arrived at the site in the early hours of Sunday……
A planning application for a new power station was submitted to the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) in October. Further public consultation is taking place and a final decision will be made by the energy secretary.

Protester Zoe Stone said: “We are concerned EDF’s preliminary works are going to destroy a protected nature reserve, a site of Special Scientific Interest and all before they even have planning permission to build a power station…..”

TELL THE NRC:
PROTECT AMERICANS, NOT THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY
EXPAND EMERGENCY EVACUATION ZONES AROUND U.S. REACTORS

PLUS: GOOD NEWS ON NUCLEAR LOAN PROGRAM!

February 15, 2012

Dear Friends,

Today, NIRS and 37 other organizations submitted a formal Petition for Rulemaking to the NRC to expand emergency evacuation zones around U.S. nuclear reactors and make other improvements in emergency preparedness. We're calling this the Nuclear 911 campaign.

The widespread radioactive contamination caused by the Fukushima nuclear disaster (and Chernobyl before it) makes clear that the current 10 mile Emergency Planning Zones in the U.S. are woefully inadequate to protect the American people.

150,000 people in Japan were evacuated from more than 25 miles away from Fukushima Daiichi, and hundreds of thousands more remain in contaminated areas. Yet 80% of the airborne radiation released by Fukushima blew over the Pacific Ocean rather than over populated areas. We can't count on a favorable wind to protect the American people from a nuclear accident!

It would, of course, be better to close U.S. reactors permanently. But as every anti-nuclear activist knows, that's easier said than done. That is our goal and we are building the movement to do just that–but as long as nuclear reactors operate, the American people deserve the greatest possible protection from nuclear meltdowns.

This Petition for Rulemaking would make four major changes to existing emergency planning regulations:

*Expand the current Emergency Planning Zone from 10 to 25 miles
*Create a new Emergency Response Zone in a 25 to 50 mile radius from nuclear reactors; utilities would be required to identify and publicize emergency evacuation routes
*Expand the existing Ingestion Pathway Zone for interdiction of contaminated food, milk and water from 50 miles to 100 miles
*Require utilities to hold emergency exercises that entail an initiating or concurrent regionally-appropriate natural disaster.

NRC Chairman Greg Jaczko and the U.S. State Department advised U.S. citizens within 50 miles of Fukushima to evacuate. Yet here in the U.S., such an ad hoc evacuation would itself lead to disaster. Without advance planning, roads would be clogged, people who rely on mass transit would be stranded, people in hospitals and other institutions would be left behind. It would be even worse after an earthquake or hurricane, or other natural disaster. We all saw what happened after Hurricane Katrina; adding a Fukushima-type meltdown would have been calamitous. That's unacceptable. We must be better prepared.

And now for a bit of good news! If you follow us on Facebook or Twitter, you already know: President Obama's new budget includes NO new loan money for construction of new reactors! For the past two years, the Administration tried to increase the nuclear loan program by $36 Billion, but thanks largely to YOUR actions (including more than 200,000 letters to Congress over the past two years), no new money was approved by Congress. Now the administration is not even asking for new money. It's a huge victory.

Our next step, of course, will be a new effort to end the nuclear loan program entirely and to rescind the $18.5 billion for new reactors (including the $8.3 billion earmarked for the Vogtle reactors in Georgia) and $4 billion for uranium enrichment plants that was approved in 2007. We'll have a new action on that soon.

'Radiation and You'
The East Tennessee chapter of the Health Physics Society will hold a free public seminar March 2. It's being called "Radiation and You" and, according to the society, will feature local experts on radiation safety, nuclear medicine and nuclear engineering.

The seminar will begin at 6:30 p.m. at Pollard Auditorium on the campus of Oak Ridge Associated Universities (210 Badger Ave.). The group's announcement said there will be a number of short presentations on radiation basic, uses and regulation of radioactive materials, and information on the accident at Fukushima, Japan. There will also be a question-and-answer period.

As a voluntary non-profit organization, Senrinomichi will now organize artistic events intended to promote awareness of the ongoing plight of the victims of the triple disaster, and to raise funds for locally-based organizations which are providing practical assistance to the victims.

Our first action will take place in Nanterre, a few minutes from the centre of Paris, on March 11 – the first anniversary of the triple disaster. With friends from Nanterre, we have tried to prepare a rich, dynamic and interactive program for this day. For those in the Paris region that day, we would be really happy to meet you there!

3/11/2012 will be one year after the catastrophe at Fukushima. Currently fifty one of the fifty four nuclear reactors in Japan have been shut down. Three eyewitnesses will be in our area for the week of March 4 to March 11.

Dr. Tetsunari Iida has a Master’s Degree in Nuclear Science Studies from Kyoto University, a PhD from Tokyo University, worked in Energy & Environmental Studies at the Japan Research Institute, and spent many years in the nuclear industry. He is now Executive Director of the Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies in Japan and serves on the Japanese Cabinet Secretariat Advisory Committee for Prevention of
Nuclear Accidents.

Dr. Yuki Tanaka is Research Professor of History at the Hiroshima Peace Institute, Hiroshima City University, and author of many books on nuclear power and related topics.

Mr. Noriyuki Kitajima, known as Saburo, is an organizer for the Precariat Union in Tokyo. He was involved in helping the victims of the earthquake and Tsunami after March 11, and currently works at Fukushima Daiichi and Daini nuclear power plants as a subcontract worker.

Moderator, Professor Chris Williams
Representing Shut DOWN INDIAN POINT NOW!

March 10-11, 2012
Swift Hall 3rd Floor Lecture Hall
1025 East 58th Street, Chicago, IL 60637
9-6 Saturday; 10-2 Sunday
The event is being held in honor of Norma Field, Robert S. Ingersoll Distinguished Service Professor in Japanese Studies, who will be retiring from the University of Chicago this year after a long and distinguished career as a scholar, teacher, and activist.

The two-day symposium will feature five public intellectuals and activists from Japan, each speaking about the personal and social impact of last year's earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster. Speakers will include Amamiya Karin, Komori Yoichi, Ryusawa Takeshi, Takahashi Tetsuya, and Yokoyu Sonoko, with remarks and translation by Brian Bergstrom, Heather Bowen-Struyk, Mika Endo, Adrienne Hurley, Justin Jesty, Miho Matsugu, Yuki Miyamoto, Sam Perry, Mamiko Suzuki, and Tomomi Yamaguchi. Please see below for more information about Professor Field and the participants in the symposium.

Here is the bill's stated purpose: "This bill prohibits a person from operating a nuclear generating facility in the State until the person discloses specified information to the Public Service Commission (PSC). This information includes the short-term and long-term plans for storing spent nuclear waste generated at the facility; the plan to mitigate any increase in the temperature of water flowing through a nuclear generating facility into the Chesapeake Bay or a tributary of the bay; the total projected cost of power generated at the facility (per kilowatt-hour); the details of any federal or State loan guarantee used to finance the nuclear generating facility; and a description of any cost overruns incurred by the builder of the nuclear generating facility in previous projects."

While we would prefer a stronger bill, along the lines of California's law that prohibits new reactor construction entirely until there is a radioactive waste site in place, this bill is a good first step. And it is clearly aimed at Calvert Cliffs-3, which we are continuing to fight in NRC licensing hearings (a fight we expect to win later this Spring). In addition, it would send a message to any future companies wanting to put nuclear reactors in Maryland that they may want to rethink their plans.

Don't forget to click the link you'll see there for additional global actions to get a sense of the incredible number and variety of events going on all over the world!

If an action you're involved with isn't listed, let us know and we'll do our best to get it posted quickly. Thousands of people, and media, will be viewing this page over the next several days.

We hope you'll be able to get out and support the action closest to you–and if there aren't any, grab a couple friends and go out and start one of your own!

In other news, NIRS is in a competition to get a free booth at this year's Netroots Nation conference in Rhode Island. Netroots Nation is the annual meeting of progressive bloggers and political activists, and would be a great constituency to get our message to!

You can support NIRS in this competition by going to this page and clicking "like" by our name. However, only those with a Facebook account can participate (sorry, not our rules….). So if you have a Facebook account, please support NIRS!

An apology: earlier this week many of you received an e-mail from us about a bill in the Maryland State Senate. That e-mail was supposed to go only to people living in Maryland, but a weird glitch in our Democracy in Action system sent it to a much broader list (first time that's ever happened). So if you received that e-mail and don't live in Maryland, we apologize.

But that does give us the opportunity to remind you that we do such statewide Alerts frequently. If you are involved in a state-level legislative or other campaign that has clear targets, we're happy to support your efforts by setting up an action page and alerting our members and supporters. Contact nirsnet@nirs.org or dominiquef@nirs.org if you'd like to set up such an action.

finds that Americans remain opposed to new nuclear reactors, opposed to taxpayer loans for new reactors, and are highly supportive of renewable energy. The American people are ready for a nuclear-free, carbon-free energy future. We're working hard to bring that about, we appreciate that you are too. It's good to know we have the public on our side.

There will be an event in Washington state near the Columbia Generating Station for the anniversary of Fukushima. Here is the info:

Richland: March 11. Please come for Ceremonies of Compassion and Protection at the Gates of Hanford's Nuclear Power Plant noon to sundown in a network of community & love for the victims of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Accident in Northern Japan on the Pacific Ocean a year ago.

RIDES GIVEN and arranged. Ceremonies welcome; microphone/amplification available. Musicians, artists, stewards of the land air & waters, mothers and others, all welcome.

*Netroots Nation is the largest annual gathering of progressive bloggers and political activists in the U.S. If you read blogs like DailyKos, Media Matters, FiredogLake, TalkingPointsMemo and dozens of others, you know these new media outlets have a lot of influence. And you can bet most of the key people writing for these blogs will be at this year's Netroots Nation conference in Providence, Rhode Island June 7-10.

We think it's important to take our anti-nuclear message to this constituency. We're now in a contest to get one of the final info booths available for this event. We need to be in the top three vote-getters; right now we're at number four.

In the meantime, we have posted articles, videos and photos of last weekend's actions, including a link to a youtube page that contains an amazing 101 videos of different actions from every corner of the world. If there are articles, photos, etc of actions you were involved with that we haven't yet posted, please send them to us.

Your contributions make our work–and the work of all anti-nuclear organizations–possible. This Spring, please donate to NIRS here, or donate to the anti-nuclear organization nearest you (or both!). But please do help, and please consider making a small monthly donation. NIRS, and all of the groups working hard across the country, deeply appreciate your support and put it to the best use possible: building a nuclear-free, carbon-free future.

Stay Informed:

NIRS on the web (stay up-to-date with our new Nuclear Newsreel section on the front page, featuring the day's most interesting news on nuclear power and other energy issues): http://www.nirs.org

While most of its millions will be spent trying to influence politicians in Washington (yes, the nuclear industry cares much more about what politicians think than what you think), one part of the industry's campaign is aimed at convincing young people that nuclear power is just a-ok. That's young people as in those who watch The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

While we recognize the nuclear industry's right to free speech, we suspect The Daily Show doesn't really need their money, and it also has the right–we would argue responsibility–to reject misleading ads like those produced by the NEI.

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation is excited to welcome Dr. Helen Caldicott to Santa Barbara on Friday, March 23 for a free lecture entitled "The Medical Implications of Fukushima, Nuclear Power and Nuclear Proliferation."

The lecture will take place on Friday, March 23 at 7:00 p.m. at the Faulkner Gallery, Santa Barbara Public Library, 40 E. Anapamu St. The event is free and open to the public.

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